In Today’s Journal
* That Silly Post
* Building Up
* Storm Warning
* A New Short Story
* Of Interest
* The Numbers
That Silly Post
Wow. That recent silly post on tag line verbs got more comments and emails than I’ve had in a while. Who knew updating and running an old evergreen post would cause such a reaction?
Thanks to everyone who commented or emailed. Thanks also to those who noticed and pointed out that I included “quipped” in both the good list and the bad list.
I’ve removed that word from the good list and left it in the other. Why? Because it delivers nothing special to the narrative (tone, mood, texture—compare it with whispered or murmured or muttered) and is just another way to say “said.”
Building Up
I’m building my daily word count back up, but it’s slow going at the moment. Part of that’s getting my schedule on track again.
Part of it’s also spending more time in the chair like I used to, and part of it’s actually writing fiction while I’m in the chair.
Another part of it’s the mantra I used for so long: Keep Coming Back. It doesn’t matter how many breaks you take or how many times your attention’s diverted if you remember to keep coming back.
I’ll get there, but I’m definitely not there yet.
Might be an excellent time to jump into the Stephen King or the Running with Harvey Challenges. (grin) Just sayin’.
Storm Warning
Yesterday afternoon and last night we experienced several severe thunderstorms in a row. That included a power outage.
More of the same is due today and tomorrow. So if I don’t pop in on you, you’ll know why. So instead of waiting until tomorrow, I’ll go ahead and announce…
A New Short Story
“The Quiz Master” will go live this morning at 10 a.m. on my Stanbrough Writes Substack. Go check it out. It’s free.
If you enjoy the story, please click Like. Comments are welcome too. Both help with my Substack algorithms. Then tell Everyone else. Gracias.
Talk with you again soon.
Of Interest
Tropes Readers Love in 11 Categories
About the Ore Stamping Mills Near Tombstone Great article set in Wes Crowley’s world. I thought this would interest some of you.
Could Your Writing Friend Become a Coauthor?
Do You Still Need a Literary Agent in 2025? I haven’t read this, but a writer friend did. I advise against using agents and tradpub book publishers, and I don’t personally use Wattpad. The latter seems like an extra unnecessary step to me.
The Numbers
The Journal…………………………… 430
Writing of Blackwell Ops 48: Razor Sharpe
Day 1…… 2213 words. To date…… 2213
Day 2…… 1210 words. To date…… 3423
Day 3…… 1318 words. To date…… 4741
Fiction for September……………… 30301
Fiction for 2025…………………….. 564450
Nonfiction for September.………… 20770
Nonfiction for 2025………………… 207020
2025 consumable words………….. 763856
2025 Novels to Date…………………….. 14
2025 Novellas to Date…………………… 0
2025 Short Stories to Date……………… 32
Novels (since Oct 19, 2014)…………….. 118
Novellas (since Nov 1, 2015)…………… 10
Short stories (since Apr 15, 2014)……… 302
Short story collections……………………. 29